Writing & Research CenterWrite there with you

GENERAL COMMENTS ABOUT OUR CENTER

"I left feeling more confident about my essays, because I had a clearer idea of the direction I wanted to take them. I was very pleasantly surprised by my OWRC experience, and I would recommend it to anyone working on a paper! "

"I like how the room is set. It seems really personable. I also like how you can schedule appointments and that there isn't a long wait. Everybody seems nice and knows what he or she is doing."

"I like OWRC better than other writing center because of its convenient hours and great tutors. They really helped me to improve my papers."

"One thing I don't like is that it's really hard for people who need an immediate tutoring session but don't have an appointment yet. It would be really nice if there's at least one tutor available for non-appointment tutoring session."

"It is great that the program is open on Sundays and late in the day!! Also, using a whole table is nice, because it gives us enough space to work with."

"Thank you for creating this. It has always been needed for all students. I will say graduate students are left with the expectation to publish but general lack of guidance. You can find courses that tell you how to publish, but that is not the same thing as mentored help with your writing topic and writing skills available at the OWRC. That is what has always been lacking. Professors don't want to take the time to help with that. The type of writing that you do in classes does not prepare you to have the skills needed for publishing. Thank you thank you thank you for what you all do!"

"After reading my paper, the tutor was quickly able to understand what I was trying to say. He helped me to organize an outline of my major points so that I could refocus the confusion in my paper. He enabled me to rewrite with confidence. Thanks!"

"The tutor was great, my assignment was pretty vague, and he helped me get rolling in the right direction with how I should get started and the organization of the paper."

"The tutor was an incredible help, and she was much more specific in her comments and suggestions than any other person I had visited at some of the other writing centers on campus."

"I've been intimidated to come to a writing center rather than have someone I know read my paper. My tutor was very kind and quick to put me at ease. The comments she made seemed very accurate and helped me structure my paper better."

"The tutor I worked with gave me great feedback. She had constructive, concrete ideas for how to improve my essays and really answer the given prompt."

"Her attitude in tutoring was very positive and supportive. She was willing to help as if it was her own paper and gave me lots of encouragement."

"OWRC tutors are so great!! They understand that papers should have powerful sentences and the structure should be presented clearly. Not only did they help me cut out a lot of clutter in the paper, but they showed me how to add-on/alter sentences to make them more powerful. In speaking with them, I was able to better translate my ideas onto paper."

"My tutor had taken the class I was writing for last quarter, so he provided me with a lot of great help and feedback. He gave a lot of helpful suggestions that made my paper much stronger. He was knowledgeable on the subject, and I would recommend him to my friends."

"I greatly appreciate your help; it focused my ideas gave me an outline and direction as far how the paper should be written. I am very impressed that you could guide me in the right direction without having read Chaucer. It showed me that you are an expert (true professional) assisting others with their writing, and I would seek your help again on a paper I need to write. I learned valuable techniques on how to write a paper as far as thesis statement and introductory paragraph, the supporting paragraphs that follow, and finally the conclusion. You made it seem so easy and very obtainable for me to write my paper with confidence."

"My tutor was amazing! She worked through my prompt with me and helped me develop new ideas and make new analysis I never would've recognized before our session. It was very helpful, and my paper is much stronger because of her."

"I liked this tutor's ability to help me think about different theoretical approaches I might take."

"I was so impressed by the insightful reading my tutor gave to my work, and how she pushed me to clarify and 'tighten' my argument. I felt so much more confident about the piece by the 3rd draft. What was particularly useful was when she pointed out subtle changes in voice and tone, so that I knew what 'persona' I was projecting in my writing."

"I really liked the tutoring style of the person I worked with. First, she took a careful look at my paper and pointed out overall strong points. Then she explained details, and we talked what I could do next about my paper. She was so calm and friendly that I could talk with her about anything regarding my paper or writing without hesitation."

"I liked how the tutor helped me create a detailed outline which provided me a model for how I should organize my arguments more clearly. I really appreciate how her advice was very specific rather than just general comments like "this paragraph needs to be more organized"; it gave me a clear direction regarding how I should revise my paper."

"I liked how she helped me directly with my paper and showed me areas in which I could improve. I didn't get any fluff or airy comments, rather, I talked through straight-forward examples of possibilities for improving my paper."

"OWRC tutors are wonderful! I came in very unsure and worried about what I had to do, and the tutors helped me calm down and focus and work on the task at hand. I was also able to take what I learned in the writing center and apply it to my other writing works."

"I was impressed by the tutor's ability to help clarify central ideas and excise extraneousness info over the course of our session. She helped pave a focused way through a lot of diffuse thinking and was patient and encouraging...the experience absolutely helped me to get more of a sense of where I should go with what I had, also what to avoid...she also conveyed key points about academic paper structure that I had no idea about before our meeting but can now use as good general principles to keep in mind while writing...overall an extremely helpful experience...clearly she's dedicated"

"It was really helpful to have the tutor model an example of a concept for me. I didn't remember ever learning it before, and he was happy to show me examples of things like how a comma is properly used with dependent and independent clauses. Also, when he wrote down the summaries of each of my paragraphs while I just talked about them it really freed up my mind. It was extremely helpful! :)"

"The tutors I worked with was really good at critiquing my paper, but not in a harsh or demeaning way. He offered just enough suggestions to make me think but made sure that I was thinking instead of him feeding me the answers. He was also very friendly and outgoing, which made it easier to feel comfortable during the session. I never felt like he put himself above me like a teacher, but rather that he came at my paper from a friend level, which was refreshing."

"I like the comprehensive feedback I was given. The tutor helped me answer many questions that I had yet to articulate and still others that I hadn't even thought of. She has reviewed three of my papers and each one was given a 4.0. She has given me excellent advice on every aspect of my paper: structure, style, comprehension, etc. I would recommend her to anyone."

"My tutor helped me with the flow of my dissertation outline. She gave me useful suggestions for organizing my writing in general. I always learn something new from the tutors at OWRC. Thank you for making your services available to graduate students! "